The present invention relates generally to walking and jogging conditioning devices and, more particularly, pertains to stand up exercise equipment wherein a user""s feet travels through a curved path of travel to produce a more natural motion of walking or jogging.
Recognizing the benefits of exercise contrasted with the various constraints of time and space limiting exercisers in using their lower and upper body muscles, various walking/jogging machines have been designed to provide for physical development and aerobic exercise. It is generally desirable to create a machine that will allow a user to walk or jog without the impact on the user""s joints that occur while running on the ground or on a treadmill. There are a number of elliptical machines on the market today which achieve this result, but force the users into an unnatural motion.
It is a general object of the present invention to provide an exercising machine which enables an individual to exercise lower and upper body muscles over a range of motion.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide an exercise machine which permits one""s feet to move along a smooth path during exercise.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an exercise machine which utilizes a drive and cam arrangement and a linkage system to produce a low impact, natural ambulatory motion.
In one aspect of the invention, a walking/jogging exercise machine includes a frame supported upon a generally horizontally extending floor. A drive shaft is mounted for rotation, and a pair of cams is mounted for rotation on the drive shaft. A pair of first track assemblies is fixed to the frame, and a pair of second track assemblies is rotatably attached to the frame and includes brackets having first rollers which ride upon the peripheries of the cams. A pair of non-aligned foot assemblies is mounted for sliding movement on the first and second track assemblies. A linkage arrangement is provided between the drive shaft and the foot assemblies for transferring the movement of the foot assemblies to the cams so as to produce a change in the angle of a user""s ankle which will result in a natural walking/jogging motion.
The frame includes a base member, vertical uprights connected to the base member and a rearwardly angled support member joined to the base member. A circular drive pulley is mounted for rotation on the drive shaft between the cams. A brake assembly is mounted forwardly of the vertical uprights and is entrained with the drive pulley by a drive belt. The frame carries an electronic controller connected to the brake assembly for providing resistance to the drive shaft. The first track assemblies take the form of downwardly and forwardly declined, rear guide shaft assemblies disposed at an angle of about 10 degrees to the floor. The second track assemblies take the form of front guide shaft assemblies, each including a cylindrical tube connected to a bifurcated bracket for holding one of the first rollers which ride upon the cam assembly. The cylindrical tube pivots through an angular range of about 5 to 10 degrees relative to the floor. Each foot assembly includes a foot pedal mounted upon a support bar having a rearward end provided with a second roller attached to a carriage assembly which rides back and forth on one of the rear guide shaft assemblies. Each foot assembly includes a forward, lower end equipped with a third roller which rolls back and forth along the cylindrical tube of the front guide shaft assembly. The carriage assembly includes a pair of side plates for holding a pair of upper rollers which ride upon an upper surface of the rear guide shaft assembly, and a lower roller which rides upon a lower surface of the rear guide shaft assembly. An adjustment device for changing the position of the upper and lower rollers is provided on the carriage assembly. A pair of swing arms is pivotally connected to an upper portion of the support member and carries a pair of handles fixed thereto. The support member carries a pair of handgrips fixed thereto. The linkage arrangement includes a pair of bell cranks attached at one end of the drive shaft, and a pair of forward connecting links, each having a first end pivotally connected to another end of one of the bell cranks, and a second end pivotally connected to a mid portion of one of the swing arms. A pair of rear connecting links is also provided, each having a first end pivotally secured to a bottom end of one of the swing arms, and a second end pivotally connected to one of the carriage assemblies.
The invention further contemplates a method of walking/jogging in an exercise machine, the method including the steps of providing a frame supported on a generally horizontally extending floor; mounting a drive shaft for rotation on the frame; mounting a pair of cams for rotation on the drive shaft; fixing a pair of first track assemblies to the frame; rotatably mounting a pair of second track assemblies to the frame such that the second track assemblies have brackets for holding first rollers which ride upon the peripheries of the cams; mounting a pair of non-aligned, foot assemblies for sliding movement on the first and second track assembly; and providing a linkage arrangement between the cams and the foot assemblies for transferring movement of the foot assemblies to the cams so as to produce a change in the angle of a user""s ankle which will result in a natural walking/jogging motion.
Various other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be made apparent from the following description taken together with the drawings.